Chris Holtmann and the Buckeyes Open Season in Style

Chris Holtmann’s tenure as head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes got off to a solid start with a 95-64 blowout victory over out-manned Robert Morris University.

Keita Bates-Diop, who missed the final 21 games of last season, returned to the court with 19 points and 17 rebounds. Kam Williams contributed 16 points while freshmen Kaleb Wesson and Musa Jallow scored 13 and 11 points, respectively.

Robert Morris jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead behind a pair of three pointers from Matty McConnell before the Buckeyes went on a seven-point run to take a 9-6 lead, never looking back as they went into the locker room with a 46-26 half time lead.

The Buckeyes wouldn’t take their foot off the pedal in the second half, extending their lead to 30 points with 9:01 remaining before securing the 31 point final margin of victory. The Buckeyes would finish the game shooting 60 percent from the field.

Despite the convincing win, there were several issues with the Buckeyes’ performance Friday night that will keep Coach Holtmann up at night. Ohio State lost the turnover battle, committing 19 turnovers, shot 58 percent from the free-throw line and gave up nine offensive rebounds to a vastly undersized opponent.

Even with the aforementioned hiccups, the effort from the Buckeyes was sustained all game long, something that was lacking the last few years.

Ohio State looks to build on Friday night’s successes as they return to Value City Arena on Sunday at 2:30pm against Radford, looking for their second win of the season.